Texans 30, Steelers 6: Houston Trounces Pittsburgh to Advance to Divisional Round

Houston scored two defensive touchdowns in a dominant second-half performance.

Mike Kadlick

The Texans are moving on. / Charles LeClaire-Imagn Images

The NFL’s outstanding slate of wild-card round football officially came to an end on Monday night in Pittsburgh, as the Texans took care of business, 30–6, over the Steelers to advance to the divisional round of the AFC playoffs.

Houston’s defense, smothering as always, sacked Aaron Rodgers four times and forced him into a fourth-quarter pick-six—carrying the Texans despite a subpar performance from quarterback C.J. Stroud.

Steelers coach Mike Tomlin is now 0–7 in his last seven playoff games, and questions about both his and Rodgers' NFL futures are set to take center stage this offseason. As for the Texans? They're onto the next round. They'll take on the Patriots next Sunday in Foxborough with a chance to advance to the AFC championship game.

Thanks for following along with our coverage here at SI. We'll continue to live blog the remainder of the NFL playoffs, so keep it here for more!

Steelers vs. Texans: Wild-Card Round Scores, Updates, and More

More NFL on Sports Illustrated

Mike Kadlick

Mike Kadlick is a senior NFL news writer for Sports Illustrated. He’s also a New England Patriots reporter for CLNS Media, where he hosts the Patriots Daily podcast and covers the beat from Gillette Stadium. Before joining SI, Kadlick worked at WEEI sports radio in Boston. He holds a master’s degree in public relations from Boston University. When Kadlick’s not covering football, he can be found running, spending time with his wife and dog, and enjoying all things pizza.